The bay

Ideally located between Brittany and Normandy, the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel offers breathtaking landscapes to all who visit.

Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979 and housing the rock that makes it so famous, the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel impresses with its beauty. Known for having some of the highest tides in Europe, it offers landscapes that are vastly different from one another. Whether the tide is high or low, whether the sea is calm or rough, at dawn or dusk, under the rain or in full sunlight… the bay always has something dazzling to offer.

Spanning 500 km², from Cancale on the Breton coast to Granville on the Norman coast, you can contemplate it from all angles: grasslands, polders, and marshes, dunes, beaches, and ports, fauna and flora, monuments, and culture…

Endowed with a significant diversity of natural environments, the bay is home to a total of 130 bird species, including seagulls and gulls, known for their famous melody, as well as brent geese, avocets, and many other species.

In the grasslands, also called salt meadows, where land and sea meet, one can often see large herds of lambs frolicking freely and feasting on the salty-tasting flora offered by the bay.

In addition to the English Channel, the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel is also crossed by three rivers: the Couesnon to the west of Mont Saint-Michel and the Sée and Sélune to the east.

In these waters, one can also find sole, rays, grey sea bream, sea bass… This pleases the dolphins and seals that frequent them, and you may have the honor of encountering them during your visit.

Since its foundation in the 8th century, Mont Saint-Michel has become a major pilgrimage site. But to reach it, of course, one had to cross its bay, famous for the rapid rise of its waters and its dangerous quicksands. Today, it is much easier to reach Mont Saint-Michel safely, but if you’re looking for adventure, it’s still possible to cross the bay and discover these famous quicksands with a licensed guide.

The Bay of Mont Saint-Michel is also renowned for the various professions that exploit it. Among them, maritime professions hold an important place, with mussel farming, oyster farming, and fishing in particular.

Agriculture is also very present in the area, with vegetable farming established since the 19th century in the polders, now forming a large checkerboard of rectangular fields. There is also the breeding of salt meadow lambs and sheep, with a controlled designation of origin, which feed on the saline and iodine-rich flora of the bay’s pastures.

Finally, the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel is also, and above all, about Mont Saint-Michel and its Abbey. This rocky marvel that rises in the middle of a vast expanse of sand offers its visitors the remnants of medieval life and dazzling landscapes.

→ For more information about Mont Saint-Michel and its Abbey.